


Follow You Down

by karrenia_rune



Category: Space Cases (TV)
Genre: Episode Related, Gen, Stress Relief, Yoga
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-28
Updated: 2014-02-28
Packaged: 2018-01-14 02:47:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1249894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karrenia_rune/pseuds/karrenia_rune
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Harlan and Radu are obviously feeling stressed out about what happened to them in one of the Christa's malfunctioning shuttles, Rosie comes up with an an idea, Radu is onboard with it; Harlan, much less so.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Follow You Down

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rosencrantz](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosencrantz/gifts).



Disclaimer: Space Cases is the creation of Bill Mumy and Peter David and belongs to Nickelodeon. It is not mine. This is for Rosencrantz’s request in Space Swap Round One. The title comes from the Gin Blossom’s song by the same name. An episode tag for season 2 episode, “Runaway.”

 

“Follow You down” a

After his near brush with death Harlan still felt as if he were standing on solid ground one moment and spinning around like a dervish the next. For one thing, it made him angry, and the fact that he did not who or what he was angry at just made it worse. He spent the better half of the next three days after the malfunction of one of Christa’s capsules his mind only half on his duties and the better half feeling as if he’d been hung up on a clothes-line and left to dry. 

He really believed that he hid it well, though, and maybe they did, because even Suzee, whom he really liked, despite their friendly bickering sometimes, left him alone.

“Well, well, just a little ray of sunshine today,” Suzee remarked as she passed Harlan by in corridor on her way to the Engine Room. 

“Buzz off, Suzee,” Harlan griped.

“Sure, but it’s obvious to anyone with eyes in their head that something’s bothering you. So why don’t you do something about it.”  
***  
Radu for his part did not care to dwell too much on what had happened. He was just relieved that they had managed to get out of the mishap alive and with all of their limbs intact. 

He’d been walking around in a kind of funk; a word he’d picked up from Bova, but it seemed to fit, and his mind only partially on his duties when Rosie ran up to him in the corridors. She just barely caught up to him as he was about to hop into one of the Jump Tubes which led to the Command Deck.

“Radu, wait up!” Rosie exclaimed. “I want to tell you about something I found that I think will help you, well, you and Harlan.” 

Radu nodded and waited until she got her breath back. “What is it?” “You see, not that I think there’s anything wrong with either of you. Because I think the world of both of you…but Suzee and I got to talking and she said that you’ve been feeling off since the incident where you and Harlan nearly died and naturally that would lead to a lotta stress….” Rosie trailed off and heaved a giant sigh.

“Rosie, slow down. You’re not making any sense,” Radu said.

“You see, I wanted to help, so I was looking through Christa’s archives and I found something that will help both of you. That is if you’re willing to give it a try.”

“Sure, what is it?” he asked.

“It’s an old Earth meditation exercise technique called Yoga, it’s supposed to be good for both your mind and body as a way to relieve stress,” Rosie replied.

“Do you have any hard copies available,” asked Radu, “I have to be in Command Post at 0900 hours and you how the Commander gets when we’re late.”

“Sure thing,” Rosie replied. “I get the information and give it to you after our duty shift. How’s that?” Radu offered her a smile and replied. “Sounds good to me.”  
**

“What is this?" Harlan demanded the moment that he walked into the Team Room, empty of all occupants at this hour except for the two of them. Spread on the floor in front of the circular couches was an array of plastic mats and through the speakers, the ship’s computer was playing a melody that Harlan did not recognize, something without lyrics, soft and soothing.

“You got Rosie’s message, then?” asked Radu.

“Yeah, but you never answered my first question.”

“To be honest I never heard of it either until Rosie found it in Christa’s archives, but it’s supposed to be good for relaxation and for concentration.” Radu shrugged those slender but strong shoulders and then reached up to tie his wild ash-blond mane of hair into a tighter braid. “I thought it would be a good idea if tried it together.”

“Uh, uh, no way, man,” Harlan began, and then without his being quite aware of it something caught him up and was literally brought up short in the act of back-pedaling out of the room. “What’s it called?” 

“Yoga. And there’s a manual with a diagram of each pose. To begin with, I think we’re supposed to start out with something simple, like a tree, or, or, something like that.”

“So, what do I have to do?” asked Harlan.

“First, you need to take off your boots.”

“Are you sure?” Harlan demanded and then realized that Radu had already removed his own pair of Star Academy standard issue footwear and was standing on the plastic mats barefoot. 

“Oh, okay and then sauntered over to the couches and began to removed his own boots before he got up and took up a stance on one of the mats. “So, what do we do now?”

“According to the instructions we need to center our chi.”

“Our what?”

“Chi, what people from Old Earth used to refer the life energy that flows through all sentient beings.”

“You’re really taking this stuff seriously, huh, Radu,” Harlan remarked as he concentrated on centering his life energy because the way he figured if Radu could do this he could do it, and do it better.

“Then, you take deep breaths, in, out, not too fast, not too slow; there’s that it,’ Radu said, ”And then we get to the poses.”

“Wait, what? Poses, you never said anything about poses.”

“Harlan, stop worrying so much, okay. I would never steer you wrong, and from Rosie told me and from what I’ve read about this Yoga stuff is actually supposed to be good for you.”

“Okay, okay,” Harlan muttered. “What next?”

“Here, “ offered Radu, “You can see for yourself in this illustrated pamphlet.”

Harlan took the offered bound hard copy and studied it for a moment. “I’m supposed to stand balanced on one foot with my hands folded over my heart.”

“Yeah, it’s called the tree pose. It’s easy. I’ll demonstrate.”

“Yeah, easy for someone who has natural balance,” Harlan muttered.

“Truth to tell, Harlan,” Radu said quietly, with a blush spreading across his pale features, “being Andromedan with natural balance really is an advantage. I’m surprised I never stumbled on this yoga stuff before. It’s been so helpful in helping me maintain my concentration.” Radu took up the tree pose, his breathing relaxed and regular, and then into spread his arms flung out and outward. 

“I don’t know what to say to that,” said Harlan as he tried to adopt a similar pose and wobbled for a moment before he figured he had it down pat. 

The next pose in the pamphlet required him to inhale and bring his arms up and over your head and specified that he had to stay grounded in the heels and keep his shoulders moving away at the same time that he reached up. His gaze traveled up and outward to where his hands were spread in a fan shape spread about shoulder's width apart.

Radu offered encouragement. “Good going, Harlan! Now you’ve got it!”

“Great. Wonderful even, but can you please stop talking while I’m trying to concentrate?”

“Sure,”Radu nodded as he moved into his own body into a swan dive position and touched his toes and then down into a squatting position, the fingers of both hands coming together with the heels of his hands touching each other; according to the instructions was called a garland pose.

After a while, of bending and moving around Harlan, at last, asked, “So how long do we have to keep this up?”

Radu nodded and then replied, “As long as you want, but I think a half hour to an hour is recommended. If you’re ready to stop so am I.”

“I’m ready to call it quits,” Harlan replied as he got up and rolled his shoulders to relieve them of any kinks from having had to shift positions so rapidly. To his surprise, he really did feel better than he had in the past four days.

“So, said Radu quietly, “Now that you’ve tried it, what do you think?”

“It’s good, I guess. Not at all what I was expecting….and…” Harlan trailed off.

“I’m glad.” Radu replied simply.

“Wait, you said it helped you with your concentration?”

“I did.”

“Do you think it will help with my concentration, at least when it comes to all of those crazy exams that Miss D keeps on giving us?”

Radu nodded and replied. “I don’t see why not.”

“Then we’ll go again, next week?”

“Sure, whatever you say, Harlan.”


End file.
